Which Sony dvd playr is a good CD playr

The S9000 (the SACD one) will output a 24/96 signal from its digital out, I believe--check the many posts on this unit, it has gotten a lot of good feedback. And you get SACD too. Your last question is a little confusing--for a signal to be "upsampled" to 24/96, all you need is a regular 16/44 digital output. I assumed that what you were asking was if the player could output a 24/96 signal on a disc that would permit that information to be passed (and most if not all DVD-A discs, as opposed to the Chesky and Classic DADs, will not permit that signal to be passed through the digital out) to a 24/96 DAC. Anyway, check the other threads on this unit to see what others think of the 9000 as a CD player and a transport. My recollection is that a decent DAC like the MSB would be an improvement over the standard Sony analog stage in the unit, but that's what you'd expect given the Sony's price point.

I concur with the S9000ES. The 7000 and 7700 have a decent CD sound, but they're a step below the 9000. From there, the step falls rapidly.

http://www.planethifi.com/planethifi/sum97dvps7000rev.htm

I have the 7700 and have listened to the 9000. Neither is a "good" CD player, although the 9000 is far and away better than the 7700. Where the 9000 shines is playing SACDs.

If you goal is good CD playback but you also want DVD, I would get a cheap DVD player, such as the Sony 360, and look at some of the standalone CD players in the $1500 to $2000 range.

The Pioneer DV-05, while not progressive scan, is still a great DVD player with very good CD play back as long as you use an active preamp. It will output the full 24/96 signal when properly set up thru the menu. Best of all you can score one on the net for around $400. Good luck